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Tour de Lights and a reception for sponsors was held at Jolly Holiday Lights in Altoona at the Adventureland Campground Nov. 20. The event sponsors were given an opportunity to drive through the lights before they open to the public. Mark Davitt/special to the Heral, Mark Davitt/special to the Heral

Tour de Lights and a reception for sponsors was held at Jolly Holiday Lights in Altoona at the Adventureland Campground Nov. 20. The event sponsors were given an opportunity to drive through the lights before they open to the public. Mark Davitt/special to the Heral, Mark Davitt/special to the Heral

Tour de Lights and a reception for sponsors was held at Jolly Holiday Lights in Altoona at the Adventureland Campground Nov. 20. The event sponsors were given an opportunity to drive through the lights before they open to the public. Mark Davitt/special to the Heral, Mark Davitt/special to the Heral

Tour de Lights and a reception for sponsors was held at Jolly Holiday Lights in Altoona at the Adventureland Campground Nov. 20. The event sponsors were given an opportunity to drive through the lights before they open to the public. Mark Davitt/special to the Heral, Mark Davitt/special to the Heral

Tour de Lights and a reception for sponsors was held at Jolly Holiday Lights in Altoona at the Adventureland Campground Nov. 20. The event sponsors were given an opportunity to drive through the lights before they open to the public. Mark Davitt/special to the Heral, Mark Davitt/special to the Heral

Tour de Lights and a reception for sponsors was held at Jolly Holiday Lights in Altoona at the Adventureland Campground Nov. 20. The event sponsors were given an opportunity to drive through the lights before they open to the public. Mark Davitt/special to the Heral, Mark Davitt/special to the Heral

Tour de Lights and a reception for sponsors was held at Jolly Holiday Lights in Altoona at the Adventureland Campground Nov. 20. The event sponsors were given an opportunity to drive through the lights before they open to the public. Mark Davitt/special to the Heral, Mark Davitt/special to the Heral

Tour de Lights and a reception for sponsors was held at Jolly Holiday Lights in Altoona at the Adventureland Campground Nov. 20. The event sponsors were given an opportunity to drive through the lights before they open to the public. Sponsors registered and eagerly joined the festivities. Mark Davitt/special to the Heral, Mark Davitt/special to the Heral

Tour de Lights and a reception for sponsors was held at Jolly Holiday Lights in Altoona at the Adventureland Campground Nov. 20. The event sponsors were given an opportunity to drive through the lights before they open to the public. Sponsors registered and eagerly joined the festivities. Kyle Robinson of Kyle's Bikes of Ankeny with RaeAnn Robinson enjoyed fun holiday greetings with very large puppy. Mark Davitt/special to the Heral, Mark Davitt/special to the Heral

Tour de Lights and a reception for sponsors was held at Jolly Holiday Lights in Altoona at the Adventureland Campground Nov. 20. The event sponsors were given an opportunity to drive through the lights before they open to the public. Sponsors registered and eagerly joined the festivities including this group representing HyVee. Mark Davitt/special to the Heral, Mark Davitt/special to the Heral

Tour de Lights and a reception for sponsors was held at Jolly Holiday Lights in Altoona at the Adventureland Campground Nov. 20. The event sponsors were given an opportunity to drive through the lights before they open to the public. Sponsors registered and eagerly joined the festivities. Brenda Rogers, Scott Farnsworth, assistant business manager with International Brotherhood of Electrical Workers, Local 347, and David Reid, IBEW 347 executive board member, enjoyed fun holiday greetings with two very large puppies. Mark Davitt/special to the Heral, Mark Davitt/special to the Heral

Tour de Lights was held at Jolly Holiday Lights in Altoona at the Adventureland Campground Nov. 18. The event volunteers could bike, walk, run, or skate through the lights before they open to the public.There were costume contests, scavenger hunts and prizes. The combined group of Webb family of Woodbine and Waukee along with the Orchard family of Jefferson enjoyed their holiday head gear. Mark Davitt/special to the Heral, Mark Davitt/special to the Heral

Tour de Lights was held at Jolly Holiday Lights in Altoona at the Adventureland Campground Nov. 18. The event volunteers could bike, walk, run, or skate through the lights before they open to the public.There were costume contests, scavenger hunts and prizes. Make a Wish spokesperson Kendra Swanson of Des Moines addresses the crowd. Mark Davitt/special to the Heral, Mark Davitt/special to the Heral

Tour de Lights was held at Jolly Holiday Lights in Altoona at the Adventureland Campground Nov. 18. The event volunteers could bike, walk, run, or skate through the lights before they open to the public.There were costume contests, scavenger hunts and prizes. These two in tutus enjoyed the adult costume contest. Mark Davitt/special to the Heral, Mark Davitt/special to the Heral

Tour de Lights was held at Jolly Holiday Lights in Altoona at the Adventureland Campground Nov. 18. The event volunteers to bike, walk, run, or skate through the lights before they open to the public.There were costume contests, scavenger hunts and prizes. Make a Wish spokesperson Kendra Swanson of Des Moines addresses the crowd while contest judges Brili Jackson of Runnells and Sara Runyan of Indianola and her sister, Megan, wait to name the winners. Mark Davitt/special to the Heral, Mark Davitt/special to the Heral

Tour de Lights was held at Jolly Holiday Lights in Altoona at the Adventureland Campground Nov. 18. The event volunteers to bike, walk, run, or skate through the lights before they open to the public.There were costume contests, scavenger hunts and prizes. Piper won the holiday pet category with her holiday music, outfit, cookies and good behavior. Piper is from Waukee where she lives with Kelly Potts Flanigan. Mark Davitt/special to the Heral, Mark Davitt/special to the Heral

Jolly Holiday Lights will be held in Altoona at the Adventureland Campground. The holiday light display benefits the Make-A-Wish foundation. Mark Davitt/special to the Heral, Mark Davitt/special to the Heral

Jolly Holiday Lights will be held in Altoona at the Adventureland Campground. The holiday light display benefits the Make-A-Wish foundation. Mark Davitt/special to the Heral, Mark Davitt/special to the Heral

Jolly Holiday Lights will be held in Altoona at the Adventureland Campground. The holiday light display benefits the Make-A-Wish foundation. Mark Davitt/special to the Heral, Mark Davitt/special to the Heral

Jolly Holiday Lights will be held in Altoona at the Adventureland Campground. The holiday light display benefits the Make-A-Wish foundation. Mark Davitt/special to the Heral, Mark Davitt/special to the Heral

Tour de Lights and a reception for sponsors was held at Jolly Holiday Lights in Altoona at the Adventureland Campground Nov. 20. The event sponsors were given an opportunity to drive through the lights before they open to the public.(Photo: Mark Davitt/special to the Heral, Mark Davitt/special to the Heral)

Jolly Holiday Lights is coming back to the Adventureland campgrounds for the second year.

Jolly Holiday Lights moved there last year after its previous site at Water Works Park was flooded the year before.

Setup for the Christmas light extravaganza started in early October with what will be the gift shop. In the coming week lights will start to be put up around the campground.

More than 100 LED light displays will make up Jolly Holiday Lights, about the same number as last year. The event raises money for the Make a Wish Foundation, which grants wishes to children with critical illnesses.

Last year 37,000 vehicles drove through the festival, which surpassed the previous record for the event by 10,000.

With the large number of those attending came long lines that backed up traffic on Hubbell Ave and Adventureland Drive.

“Now that we are back at the Adventureland campground we have worked out all of the crazy kinks that happened last year,” said Casady Christiansen, marketing and communications manager for Make-A-Wish Iowa. “We had ample amount of cars go through which in turn created a bunch of traffic jams so we have worked out a new system on how to stage cars to get them ready to get through the line. Adventureland has provided us with a huge new monitor that will be in the staging section so not only will you be waiting to go through the lights but you have a Christmas movie to watch before that.”

With record numbers attending the event Make-A-Wish also had a record profit. Of the 192 wishes granted by Make-A-Wish last year, 57 of them were paid for by Jolly Holiday Lights.

“Jolly Holiday Lights is Make-A-Wish Iowa’s largest fundraiser of the year so it is what we hold off for every year to raise as many funds as possible to help us grant those wishes to the children,” Christiansen said.

In addition to changes in the logistic side of things the dates of this year's event also will change.

“We have been open those days in the past but we felt like we are pleased to give our volunteers time to enjoy the holidays with their family and friends,” Christiansen said. “Since we are such a family friendly organization it is just easier to have holiday days closed.”

Volunteer positions are quickly filling up with only a few left in the gift shop.

Weather was not much of a factor last year besides a few nights Jolly Holiday Lights closed early for the safety of the volunteers.

“We are just hoping for people that come this year to come prepared that this is a destination light event so there might be some lines and there is definitely going to be some traffic but we hope that people have prepared themselves enough to come with a family and have it be a family experience,” Christiansen said.